Pride pitch out of jams to clinch series win over Peru State
PEOSTA, Iowa - In what couldn't have been a series of more opposite back-to-back days, the Clarke University baseball team earned a doubleheader split over Peru State College to clinch a series victory after dropping game three 8-3 then throwing a 1-0 shutout in the finale on Saturday at A.J. Spiegel Park.
After opening the series on a Friday that saw temperatures reach the 70s and the wind howling out result in a total of 70 runs scored between the two teams, an overnight storm brought in a cold front and shifted the winds essentially straight in from left field for real feel temperatures in the 20s.
The change in condition was shown in the offense over the 13.5 innings scoring 12 runs with the day's opener looking like a repeat of both Friday games as Peru State jumped out to a lead in the top of the first for the third-straight game thanks to a pair of RBI singles by Jomar Perez and Garrett Pavletich.
Both sides would trade runs back and forth as Jaxon Brooks would drive in a run with a double in the bottom of the first, the Bobcats would score on a wild pitch in the top of the second, and William Ramirez would produce an RBI single in the bottom of the second to make it 3-2 PSC after two.
The fifth inning would be a major turning point of the game as Peru State would extend their lead using a little small ball and manufacturing some runs first using a sacrifice bunt that would get thrown into the outfield as the Pride would attempt to get the lead runner but a sacrifice fly and RBI single from Airam Betancourt put three across the plate to extend the lead to four runs at 6-2.
In the bottom half, Clarke would bring the tying run to the plate in the form of Alex Reynozo as CU loaded the bases with no outs as PSC starting pitcher Kevin Diaz would force a ground ball to short where shortstop Xavier Solla would take the ball to the second base bag and throw to first for a 6-3 double play, scoring a run for the Pride but those two outs would play huge as Diaz would fully get out of the inning with just that one run getting across.
Diaz finished his outting in the seventh as his line would end at 6.1 innings pitched and three earned runs allowed on seven hits, four walks, and four strikeouts where Pavletich would come in from his second base position to get the final two outs of the game and close out their first and only win of the series.
The finale of this series ended in the same score as the finale of the Pride's first Heart of America series but this time Clarke would come out on top of the 1-0 shutout win after Reynozo would drive in the game's lone run in the bottom of the first on a single to the right side.
Getting out of jams similar to how Diaz escaped the fifth of game three would be the theme for CU game four starter Carson Possehl as the Bobcats loaded the bases with two outs in the second and one out in the third as the senior right hander would get a fly out to end the second and a 5-3 ground ball double play to end the third without allowing a run.
The only inning where Peru State didn't see a runner reach base was the top of the sixth before a leadoff walk led to Clarke head coach Brian McCabe turning to the bullpen and Jacob Monday as the Bobcats recorded a single and a sacrifice bunt against the CU reliever to put the tying run on third and go-ahead run on second with just one out in the inning.
Monday would pitch carefully to three-hole hitter Gustavo Rivera as Rivera would draw a five-pitch walk but Monday was able to force an infield fly off the bat of Josh Schaller then strike out Blake Denson swinging to end the game and leave the bases loaded, picking up his second save of the season.
Clarke baseball will head into spring break 11-10 and 5-3 in Heart play before they welcome No. 23 Central Methodist to Peosta next weekend for another four-game series at A.J. Spiegel Park on Mar. 22-23 with 1:00 p.m. CT scheduled first pitches on each day between the Pride and Eagles.